January 21, 2007

Something to ponder

Originally published July 12, 2003

If we develop the technology is it really an ethical question about whether to use it or not? I think it's more a question of WHEN to use it.

One thing I really like about living in the USA is the fact that our might is tempered by people who vote. We are not a bloodthirsty nation bent on world domination (no matter what some leftist asshats say). We prefer to be left alone, but if you FUCK WITH US, we'll open the most awesome can of whoop-ass you ever saw and feed it to you in one big bite.

With that kind of power comes a LOT of responsibility. You open that awesome can of whoop-ass ONLY when you have to. You don't do it for shits and giggles or just because you can. Our ELECTED government can never do that unless we become a bloodthirsty people, and if we didn't after 9/11, we never will.

I believe my government is picking my pocket right and left, and I believe that it pisses away money the way drunken sailors piss away beer. But I DON'T believe that we will EVER be run by a dictatorship that can get away with murder. The same people who fight our wars go to church, send their children to public schools and VOTE. They have a vested interest in keeping us from being something like Nazi Germany or the Soviet Union under Stalin.

We will not be picked on, but we don't pick on others, either. Not many countries in the history of the planet can say that and be telling the truth. We can.

If we develop a "take you OUT in two hours" weapon we should produce it and advertize the fact that we have it. We should demonstrate it when the time is right, just to prove that we are serious. That will make a LOT of assholes in the world think twice about trying to bitch-slap the "Great Satan" when they want to pitch a hissy.

I went to school with bullies, fought bullies on the playground and worked around bullies all of my life. I understand bullies. Implacable, inevitable force is the only thing they understand. They exploit your lack of will to confront them. The only way to handle a bully is to make him FEAR you.

Teddy Roosevelt said it best: "Walk softly, but carry a big stick." Bullies may not know why you walk softly, but they damn sure understand that big stick.

The USA is NOT a nation of bullies. But we are not a bunch of wusses, either. We can get along if you behave in a civilized manner. But if you CROSS US, we'll open that can of whoop-ass on you, every time.

We need to send that message loud and clear to the bullies of the world.